[Flying Goat]

No, it's not legal yet, but we did manage to get it passed thru the Judiciary Committee with a "positive recommendation." This means that by the next joint session of House & Senate, we could get it to the floor for a vote.

Following are some of the press clips we have gathered so far... Watch for us on CBS News & CNN...

I'll post more later when I have recovered from the trip!

Here's a letter from ACC President, Loretta Nall:

Folks,

Alabama made HISTORY today when, for the first time ever, our Cadillac of a medical marijuana bill HB642 passed out of judiciary committee. About 40 patients and supporters showed up at the state house this morning for a press conference and to pack out the committee room.

There was some opposition to the bill, but for the first time those who opposed it actually stated their opposition and agreed to work with us between now and the next session to find common ground. I will be preparing a much longer write up and posting it later along with a video of the entire committee session.

Many, many thanks to the wonderful people at Drug Policy Alliance who have been our allies for 6 years, Rep. Patricia Todd our magnificent bill sponsor, Rep. Cam Ward who has voted yes every time this bill has come before the committee and who this session talked the Republican caucus out of opposing our bill and demonizing our cause. I can't say enough good things about Rep. Cam Ward. He is going to make an amazing Alabama Senator
after the upcoming election in November.

And of course much love and respect to all of the patients, family members, and supporters who have called, emailed, and visited members of the House Judiciary Committee, came to our meetings, wrote letters to the editor, and donated time and money to this noble cause. None of this would be possible
without all of you out there every day putting your freedom on the line. I can never thank you enough for standing up with me in Alabama.

This is the fist step of many, but we are closer today to Alabama becoming the first medical marijuana state in the South than ever before. Rep. Todd has already agreed to sponsor our bill again next year and we plan to get an early start. I feel like 2011 or 2012 will be the year that patients and physicians in Alabama will finally have the protection they deserve.

Onward,

Loretta Nall

A write-up from the local paper:


Montgomery Advertiser

Committee approves medical marijuana bill
Scott Johnson

April 7, 2010

A legislative committee approved a bill Wednesday that would legalize marijuana for medicinal purposes.

The bill’s sponsor, Rep. Patricia Todd, D-Birmingham, said the bill had no real chance of being approved by both the House and Senate before the end of the session.

The bill is called the Michael Phillips Compassionate Care Act, named after a man with a brain tumor that caused frequent seizures who fought to make medical marijuana legal. Philips died in 2007 at the age of 38.

Jackie Phillips, Michael Phillips’ mother, said marijuana was the only thing that made him able to function normally. Without it, she said, he had seven or eight seizures a day.

“I could see the difference in him when he smoked and when he didn’t,” Phillips said.

Under the bill, patients would be required to have an identification card to purchase and possess marijuana.

The bill would allow for the licensing of clinics where patients legally could obtain marijuana.

The House Judiciary Committee made several amendments to the bill, including making the fees for ID cards high enough to cover the extra costs the bill would create.

Several members of the committee expressed concerns with the bill.

Rep. Yusuf Salaam, D-Selma, said he worries that the bill would make it possible for people to use marijuana illegally under the pretense of using it medically.

Salaam said, however, that he did not dislike the bill enough to try to kill it before it left the committee.

* *
Another write-up by the AP:

Associated Press

Alabama - House committee approves bill allowing use of marijuana for medical purposes

By Associated Press
11:11 AM CDT, April 7, 2010

MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) — A bill to legalize possession of small amounts of marijuana for medical purposes has been approved by an Alabama House committee.

The sponsor, Democratic Rep. Patricia Todd of Birmingham, acknowledges that with only five days remaining, the bill has little chance of winning final passage this session.

The bill would allow a patient suffering serious pain because of cancer or other ailments to possess up to 2.5 ounces of marijuana. The patient would need permission from a doctor and could grow his or her own marijuana.

One committee member, Democratic Rep. Yusuf Salaam of Selma, expressed concern that allowing marijuana use for medical purposes might open the door to full scale legalization of the drug.

The bill now goes to the full House.

So, you can see, all your calls & Emails really DID make a difference!

Thanks to all who took the time to support us down here in Alabama!

Now, where's that industrial hemp bill to spark full employment in this State with an easy, inexpensive crop to grow that can replace cotton with all its pollution-creating chemicals...

Hugs from the South!

[Meaty]

This is great news! It's tough to get this sort of thing passed in the south.

[Flying Goat]

Don't you know it, Meaty!

Passing with a "favorable recommendation" is even better! We anticipate legalization of MMJ in 2011 or 2012.

Come down & toke on my porch with me, if you wish... We're 100% handicap-accessible!

[Flying Goat]

Thanks, Pineboy... We're doing that right now...

...jumping for joy, that is...

[armedoldhippy]

congratulations ! am SO glad that they didn't just give you the brush-off & hurry you out a side door. have had some good experiences with 'bamas finest, quite contrary to what one might expect in a prototypical southern state. have been caught dead to rights 3 times down there (on turkey hunts) by state & federal law enforcement folks, & let go every time when they realized that we were not DRINKING! once on nat'l forest (feds), once on state hwy(trooper), & once on Chiaha (spelling?)parkway (feds, county, and state) . i LOVE alabama...

Ala-BAMA!


This is weird to read.. I can imagine toking in Montgomery. It was a unique experience to visit there once..

[Hash Zeppelin]

if bama can do it even texas may have a chance eventually.

[Pinball Wizard]

hope springs, eternal...

[Flying Goat]

Florida, Tennessee, SC & Georgia are all watching us right now. We MUST give kudos to Ethan Nadlemann, Tony & Gabriel of Drug Policy Alliance, as they were very instrumental in refining our bill to make the legislators comfortable, while addressing practical matters for patients... For instance, upping the possession limit from 1 oz to 2.5 oz... Reason: 1) because some patients live in rural areas & are unable to travel as often to obtain meds; 2) a patient's consumption varies according to the condition being treated (a chronic pain patient will generally use more than a degenerative osteoarthritis patient or a patient with insomnia only).

Special thanks to Loretta Nall, ACC President, for never, EVER giving up!

Thanks as well to Rep. Cam Ward, who both told about his experience with family members undergoing cancer treatment & Rep. Laura Hall, who son was dying of AIDS who needed someone to go out & obtain MMJ for him...

Rep. Ward was successful in convincing the Republican right-wingers not to oppose our bill, so we owe him a HUGE debt of gratitude for that! He is running for Senator in November & has promised to see this bill thru the joint hearings of House & Senate & on to the Gov's for final signature... We will be working hard to get him elected this fall!

My task for summer - a voter registration drive & concurrent ACC membership drive! If you see some frumply lil' old lady on the pier, the beach, or the Bay, it'll be me - talking to people about medical marijuana & filling out voter registration forms for them...

Our battle is not yet over, ya know... But if Bama, with the harshest pot laws in the country, becomes a medical state, I truly believe the rest of the South will follow. It is my hope that, shortly after this, cannabis will be RE-legalized from Coast to Coast in America...